Did you recently take on (or consider) a loan of 84 months or longer on a car purchase?
A reporter would like to speak with you about your experience; please reach out to PR@Edmunds.com by 7/25 for details.
Options

Subaru B9 Tribeca (B9X)

1146147149151152163

Comments

  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Great deal, wow.

    Locally I've seen a few for $28k and change, 7 pass w/NAV.

    I may ask for help locating one if I start actively shopping. I'd be willing to train up, drive down for a deal like that. Wow.

    -juice
  • nspringernspringer Member Posts: 12
    Feels plenty quick to me. I really enjoy the ease of passing on the freeway. I guess it depends on what you compare it to.
  • cluelesspacluelesspa Member Posts: 648
    well the dealer said it will be $143 to install the grill. in my box there was a NEW Alternate install instruction which did not include removing the bumper. but the car would have to be on a lift. you get to the grills from behind and underneath instead of removal of bumper. that is what the dealer quoted me for install. going to check around about getting it powder coated black. want to make sure the coating will stick over the crome coating already on it... plus not make it too thick to fit back into the B9 when done painting it.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    I thought it was plenty peppy, but I'm used to 4 bangers.

    -juice
  • tupintupin Member Posts: 71
    I guess it's a matter of perspective. We had a Forester which seemed a little dead. We also own a Toyota Matrix so the Tribeca seems plenty peppy to me. Also, this is our first Automatic and I have no issues with any hesitation when stomping it down to pass....it seems to do the appropriate geardown unlike what some others have reported. We drove it home from Maine to PEI and totally enjoyed the trip. Found the Nave quite useful....it even has pretty good data on our little town. It is off a little in terms of my home address....about 300Meters off and on the wrong side of the street....but then our town is only 19,000 people.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    We drove them along with a Murano and a Pilot, and I think a Volvo XC90 2.5T, and it seemed at least as quick as those models.

    -juice
  • megreyhairmegreyhair Member Posts: 154
    The addresses on the nav aren't always accurate. It list my house like .25 miles further up the road.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Garmin is the same, actually I should say MapSource City Select v6, the software mapping my Garmin GPS uses.

    I'm not sure why, but it's off by more than a block on my beach condo. It must think the parking lot entrance is one block north.

    So I use the save current location feature instead of the address, and that fixed it. Or replaced the erroneous one, I should say.

    -juice
  • occkingoccking Member Posts: 346
    Just posted previously on tires now a question, or rather comment on the "ride"

    Not pleased with very, very rough ride on this vehicle. I would not say a lot of "rattles" just a lot of shaking & rought sounding noises from understructure if not on a perfectly smooth road. My 8 year old Dakota p/u truck give a much smoother ride. I don't know if there is anything loose under there or just the way the car is put together.

    Any comments?????
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Check the tire pressures, make sure they're not overinflated. The Dakota has a lot more sidewall, but the Tribeca should have a more controlled ride.

    -juice
  • tupintupin Member Posts: 71
    I was looking at tirerack and wondered about Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza and Continental CrossContact LX both with treadware ratings of 680 and 700.
  • megreyhairmegreyhair Member Posts: 154
    wow... 680 and 700... They must have made them super hard. wonder how traction is on such a high treadwear tire..
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Yeah, I just wore through a tire rated at 460 and replaced them before they had fully worn out. Tires get old even if there is still tread on them, mine got loud and were not holding air properly.

    Nitto NT460 by the way.

    I replaced them with Falkens, and don't really care that the rating is lower. 4-5 years and tires are old anyway.

    -juice
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Great video for the Tribeca, it's 11 minutes long so make sure you have a fast connection and the time to watch it:

    http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4999142340359932162

    Murano, XC90 get whipped pretty badly.

    For the 06 intro Bob and I got to drive these competitors back-to-back and if you recall I was already pointing some of these things out - the Murano leaned a lot (lifted a wheel in one case), the Volvo had very slow and reluctant steering. This video also tears apart their AWD performance.

    -juice
  • tupintupin Member Posts: 71
    Thanks for the video link. Certainly makes the others look bad. Seems almost too lopsided....Did the Murano really just stop there on the hill and not move? Would make you wonder how it would make it up a steep driveway. Also, where was the rear power engaged in the Highlander? Seems strange.
  • robr2robr2 Member Posts: 8,805
    Well juice - IMHO, one has to take a Subaru produced training video with a grain of salt. I wouldn't have expected another brand to come out on top.

    I wonder why they didn't compare the Tribeca to a Pilot, MDX, or RX? I wonder why the Outback wasn't compared to an A4? I wonder why the Legacy was only compared to the Passat in one test?

    I don't doubt the capabilities of Subarus but this video is clearly not an unbiased comparison.
  • cptpltcptplt Member Posts: 1,075
    anyone tried changing one on a Tribeca yet?? Is it a dismantle the glove compartment job like on other Subes??
  • jeffmcjeffmc Member Posts: 1,742
    Apparently it is like the others. Doesn't look too bad. Here are the instructions:
    http://www.cars101.com/subaru/airfiltration.html#2006tribeca
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    Discuss all the latest Subaru news, dropping gas prices, or just get to know some of your fellow forums fanatatics a bit better! :P

    The Subaru Crew Chat is on tonight. The chat room opens at 8:45PM ET Hope to see YOU there! Check out the schedule
  • megreyhairmegreyhair Member Posts: 154
    I just got an invite from JD Powers and Assoicates to do a 2 months test drive evaluation :D on the new 2007 Ford Edge, another competition for the B9. Only 5 passengers though. I am waiting for the paperwork to finialize...... It should be interesting being that the car has a little more hp and torque. Will keep you guys posted. :)
  • kmartinkmartin Member Posts: 427
    Not to double/cross post, but check out my synopsis of the installation and initial use of the BU sensors in the "Subaru B9 Tribeca: Problems & Solutions" Forum. I am very curious to see if anyone else has had any experience with this.

    -Karen in AZ-
  • mikejlmikejl Member Posts: 78
    I changed mine. It was pretty black. I actually did it twice - the dealer gave me the wrong part the first time, so I vacuumed the old one and put it back in. It took me a while to figure it out the first time, but the second time it only took a few minutes, start-to-finish.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Did you add those yourself?

    If so I think the audio/antennae job would be a lot easier than that.

    -juice
  • jpgolf55jpgolf55 Member Posts: 34
    Practically black, wow, are you in a dusty area? How many miles do you have on the vehicle?
  • carolyn8carolyn8 Member Posts: 1
    Does anyone know why the 2007s are not available in CT yet? I started looking in the spring but since the dealer said he couldn't get my color choice in my model, I should wait until mid June when the 2007s arrived. Sounded fine then, but every month I get a new answer as to when they'll be here. Then this past weekend I discovered this site and read that other folks in other parts of the country already have one. I emailed a dealer to ask about this, and he replied I shouldn't believe everything I read on the internet. However, a dealership about 10 miles away from that one, in NY, has 2007s listed in their on line inventory so I find it hard to believe he is not aware of the disparity. Anybody aware of what's going on?
  • kmartinkmartin Member Posts: 427
    Nope...had dealer do it. First one they had done, but they asid it wasn't all that difficult.

    -Karen-
  • pschreckpschreck Member Posts: 524
    Tell that dealer that I said you shouldn't believe everything a dealer tells you.

    Seriously though, I'd read all of these posts and I'd go to another dealer. Go in educated and take what they say with a grain of salt. If in doubt about a statement that they make, come back here and ask. Someone will help if they know the answer.

    Also get Edmund's pricing so you know if they're sticking it to you.

    I did my deal with the internet sales guy at a dealerhip 25 miles away and it couldn't have been smoother. They LOVE out of town business. The guys at the local Subaru dealership were arrogant and thought I would buy from them because they were close to home and had done business with them in the past.

    Just know what you want when you send for a quote. Good luck.
  • yoyodkyoyodk Member Posts: 28
    Any suggestions for the cabin air filter installation? I looked at the instruction sheet posted in message #7636 and was thinking what a hassle. Also, where did you buy the replacement filters and what was the price? Thanks!
  • x5killerx5killer Member Posts: 368
    http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4999142340359932162

    nice video, but yeah seemed too good to be true or a little bias. The narrator did admit hey were subaru sales people and not professional driver as if maybe i professional driver could do better or these were normal ppl but it also kind of hinted to the possible bias.

    anyway, i've been growing a little bored of the Tribeca and now a couple friends of mine got this amazing Pioneer head unit in their cars. It has a larger nicer screen then the Tribeca is touchscreen and voice activated and has everything all in one. NAV, DVD (yes you can watch while driving) fm/am, cd, XM ready everything.

    Even saw a new Pioneer commercial advertising their car units but the one my friends got is the top of the line one i think so i'm sure fairly pricey but seems very worth it.

    Was thinking of seeing if it could fit in the Tribeca but its really meant to fit into/replace a double stack stereo. Cant do that in the middel for the Tribeca and wouldn't want to lose all those buttons/controls.

    Maybe it will fit in where the Screen is but then i imagine you would lose fuel consumption and some stuff.

    Hopefully might still get the new redesigned MDX when my wife gets a TL in Jan. After that video I'm a little worried about Honda/Acuras AWD though but I'm a tech person and Acura's is the best, i'm sure there will be plenty to love and i wont miss too much about Beca but we'll see, very good chance it wont make sense to get rid of her this soon and i'll be stuck with her for another couple years which will be good in some ways but i just get bored of cars quickly.

    There really isn't much more i can do to her anyway short of getting the Cobb supercharge kit installed which I hope to if i keep it.

    I do wonder how Audis AWD stacks up against Subaru and missing from that video because i guess it is equally as good. Too bad the only suv Audi has is the Q7 which I no longer like, its just too big awkward and not that appealing.

    have to see how i like the looks of the new MDX
  • saedavesaedave Member Posts: 694
    I do wonder how Audis AWD stacks up against Subaru and missing from that video because i guess it is equally as good
    Having owned two quattro-equipped VW Passats, 6 cylinder and W8,I would like to comment on the comparison.

    My 2005 3.0 VDC handles better than quattro in hard over moves that would have produced understeer in either Passat.
    However, my 1997 Legacy GT wagon had less ability in snow than either Passat (except for the poor ground clearance of the Passats).

    Current VW models (other than Touareg AFAIK) use the Haldex system like Volvo.
  • morey000morey000 Member Posts: 386
    I find it difficult to get my left elbow comfortable on the driver's door ledge while keeping my left hand on the steering wheel. For day to day driving not a problem, but I'm thinking this would be uncomfortable for a long trip. I'm 5'8" tall- so I'm guess that's about an average size human being. I've never noticed that my forearm was particularly short.

    anybody else experience this?
  • pschreckpschreck Member Posts: 524
    I do. I got an aux armrest from Herrington's (I think). It just hooks onto the window ledge. It does fall off when I slam the door but it works pretty nice on longer rides.
  • mikejlmikejl Member Posts: 78
    I live in a rural area that is probably dusty compared to a city. The car was just shy of 25K miles when I replaced it. I'm up to 35,500 now.
  • mikejlmikejl Member Posts: 78
    It is not difficult at all, but I was confused when I looked at the directions. Basically, you just pop off the side panel, unhook the elastic band that helps control the opening and closing of the glove box, unscrew and remove the fastener in the side of the glove box, then work the glove box out of the dash, unscrew and remove the five fasteners that hold the black plastic cover in place, remove the cover and slide the filter holder out of its slot. The second time I did this took about 10 minutes, start-to-finish, including reinstallation of all disassembled parts.

    Suggestions: The fasteners need to be unscrewed with a Phillips screwdriver and then popped out. You will need a short (3-4 inch total length) one to reach one of the screws.

    The only source I found for the filter is the parts desk at a Subaru dealer. I think it was listed at about $28. I had a 15% off coupon, so the bite wasn't quite that deep. Still, the filter itself is a small amount of next-to-nothing. I can imagine it selling for $5 if another source becomes available. Unfortunately, it will need to be replaced or removed eventually, or your ventilation air flow will be reduced.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Passat went back to a VW platform so it uses a Haldex.

    Audi still uses a Torsen center diff. But a Torsen acts like an open diff in frictionless conditions.

    Torsens have a bias ratio, Audi's is 2 to 1. That means the torsen can send twice as much power to the axle that it senses has more traction than the other. But if one axle has zero traction, 2 times zero is zero and it fails completely. This is why Audi started using traction control.

    VDC is superior to both in slippery conditions for that precise reason. A Torsen may carry an advantage on a dry track (that's why Subaru employs one on the rear axle of the Legacy spec.B), but in the snow or ice, VDC wins.

    -juice
  • saedavesaedave Member Posts: 694
    juice

    The older VW and present Audi large cars' traction control, surprisingly, maintains a straighter path on ice than my VDC does. Heavy throttle on the Torsen w/traction does not produce the slight weave that I get with the VDC.

    The VDC is much more fun to drive since it permits more throttle and also has less understeer because of more normal rear bias.

    FYI Audi also uses Haldex on the A3 which is the same as the Golf/Rabbit. I believe the VW Touareg uses Torsen.

    Dave
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Touareg I'm not so familiar with, but I think the system is a bit different then what Audi "cars" get.

    -juice
  • saedavesaedave Member Posts: 694
    Touareg I'm not so familiar with, but I think the system is a bit different then what Audi "cars" get

    juice,

    I believe the only difference is the addition of a low range in the transmission. Can you imagine the replacement cost for that trans! My W8's trans with quattro would have cost more than $10,000.00 to replace and that is WITHOUT the low range. As an aside, the W8 engine has a replacement cost of over $32,000.00. Don't our Subaru drivetrains seem like a bargain by comparison?

    Dave
  • yoyodkyoyodk Member Posts: 28
    I appreciate the info and I agree, the instructions were confusing, as if that's a surprise. I'll take another look at it with your guidance so I'll have the ability to replace on my own.
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    You may have noticed new discussions coming up all over the forums. What's happening is that we're getting away from the very large, everything in one pile kind of discussions and breaking things down into smaller ones. For example, Tribeca Test Drive: What Did You Think? is a new one here, and I've moved some test drive posts from here to get that one rolling.

    So I'd like to enlist your help. I'll be setting up new discussions for things like brake issues, tires & wheels, tranny issues, and the like. But if you don't see a discussion for a BP issue or problem that you think needs to be covered, please feel free to start one up. Now we don't want to get too specific, like My Left Front Tire is Flat - HELP! That's a bit too far in the other direction :P

    This will be an adjustment for us all, but will help new users find their way to info they want without having to dig through thousands of posts.

    Back to sliding the furniture around!
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    If you check the topic list here in the Subaru B9 Tribeca Group, you'll see that a bunch of new discussions have been created. A good way to look at this reorganization is that the B9 group has essentially become this discussion, and the discussion list in the group is like a table of contents for the group.

    If there's an aspect of the B9 that isn't covered by any of the discussions on the list, please feel free to start up a new discussion for it. The whole idea is to get away from these very large, everything in one pile discussions. If you happen to make one that's a bit TOO narrow in focus, and belongs as a part of an existing dicussion, we can take care of that as we go along.
  • vger105vger105 Member Posts: 57
    We bought our '06 5 passenger limited last year at the beginning of my wife's pregnancy, and were subsequently surprised by the birth of twins! As we already have a 2 1/2 year old, this meant three car seats in the second row. Again to our surprise, we discovered there are no latch points in the middle, second row position. Not only that. the seat belt arrangement is not particularly conducive for the use of a car seat in that middle position.
    Has anyone else run into this problem?
    We thought about trading in for an '07 7 passenger, but we owe about $4,000 more than the value of our Tribeca.
    TIA for any advice.
  • morey000morey000 Member Posts: 386
    Congratulations on the birth of your twins.

    There ARE three latch points in the second row (at least in my '07), and you conceivably can put three car seats in the second row. Either use the seat belt to hold it in, or attach it to the two outside seat points.

    My issue with the 7pass is that I'm using the lower latch points and keeping my single child seat in the center (supposedly the safest location), but then it's attached to the lower latch point that attached to the outside seat. So, I can't fold down the 40% passenger side 2nd row seat to get to the 3rd row, nor can I slide the rows back and forth easily, as the center mounted child seat is attached to both sides.
  • pschreckpschreck Member Posts: 524
    Are we back to a general discussion? I hope so. It feels more like a community. :)
  • jerrys2jerrys2 Member Posts: 189
    I certainly hope so. I Have been a member of the Subaru boards for years, and the new format was terrible, we need to have general discussion. Hard to believe the format was changed without running it by the members.

    Jerry :)

    To the person who changed the format :P :P :P
  • x5killerx5killer Member Posts: 368
    heh. good news on my cracked foglights which was an issue that many have had and has been discussed earlier in this thread.

    so far it sounds like original dealership is getting the new fog light housing in and will install them. part and labor free of charge. at least thats what it seemed like when i was there last and had a nice service rep look at them. he said hw was going to put some type of 3m film then on his wifes tribeca.

    i should prob give them some to put on as soon as they put the new fog lights on. Also i might have them blend my touch up paint minor mess i made on the back. and maybe they have something to clean up the extra glue around the beca lettering i put on the dash without messing up the finish of the dash.

    other then that i dont currently have any other major concerns with my 06 B9.

    my wife did get an 06 Acura TL and got an amazing deal for under invoice as the 07 is out. 07 does have live traffic nav, separate fog lights (which i like) instead of integrated into headlight supposedly and turn signals on mirros (like our B9's and all new acuras i think).

    she orig was leaning more towards black or the dark grey (anthracite for 06 and now 07 has 2 dark grey colos one is more blue but with diff names) but had to go with what they had and got the white with beige interior. I always told her i thought the TL looked best in the white and maybe she should get it but then i thought it would be boring to have 2 cars of the same color as my beca is satin white pearl with desert beige interior.

    but white was one of the only choices she could get with not many 06's left. she really lucked out with the deal and the fact it was one of the last 06's made just in sept and still had the plastic on it and so want sitting on a lot for a year.

    sucks though cus being same color it makes my B9 feel less special and i think we will get sick of the color because now no matter which car we take, its the same color inside and out on both instead of getting a variety, oh well.

    I am somewhat envious of her larger NAV screen. it is position closer and lower which makes it feel even bigger but it already is. i was told the 07 mdx nav is larger then the TL but it seems the opposite. it is set higher up and further back kind of like the tribeca so i know that makes it seem smaller but i still think it is actually smaller then the TL's

    i'm also enviou of the voice activated commands in the TL, the bluetooth which is great for cell phone and the integrated XM which sounds so much better then my portable Pioneer Inno hooke up to rear audio jack (the volume is just not as good and have to turn it up way more). and the Acura TL's xenon headlights seeem much better then the Tribeca even with teh Sylvania silver star bulbs i have in (which incidentally burn out in a year or less)

    oh well at least my b9 was the better car of the household for a year plus. It has me rushing to look into the 07 MDX prematurely though and i did testdrive one with the NAV which is no longer touchscreen and was a concern of mine. but i've heard others that were skeptical end up loving after getting used to it and wold never go back to touch screen adn i already started feeling the same.

    07 mdx is jus too new though to get a good deal. i will wait till i can get invoice on it which may be not till next year when the 08 comes out which will be fine i guess. my b9 will only be just over 2yrs old then anyway and i really should be keeping it at least 3-4 yrs if not 5 like my last car.

    i wonder if i should think about leasing instead since i seem to only like to keep a car 3-4 yrs.
  • tupintupin Member Posts: 71
    X5killer....I wish I had your budget for vehicles!! How many miles on your Beca? Also, did your factory headlights burn out or did you just decide on silverstars? Any super long lasting bulbs out there?
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    Yes, for the "community" aspect, the general discussion has been reopened. Please check the following post in the Forums Software discussion for the whys and what it means

    Sylvia, "Forums Software! Your Questions Answered..." #3319, 12 Nov 2006 2:43 pm
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Yay! Much better to have the community back, especially for those of us that don't own one yet.

    -juice
  • adkcaradkcar Member Posts: 5
    I'm considering going to satellite radio for my '06 B9 but am hesitating to because I don't want to deal with the installation of it.

    Does anyone think that the benefits of XM or Sirius outweigh the pain of installation? Any shortcuts to installing it?

    Thanks for reading.
Sign In or Register to comment.